US4003536A - Intravenous bottle support arm - Google Patents

Abstract

An intravenous bottle support includes a linear horizontal linkage formed of a pair of parallelogram linkages depending and diverging from a common upper pivot plate, corresponding arms of each parallelogram linkage being linked to a vertically movable member. The proximate end of the linkage is supported by a wall mounting bracket for frictionally restrained swinging about a vertical axis and the distal end of the linkage carries an upwardly directed bottle support arm which is angularly adjustable about a horizontal transverse axis and is releasably locked at a preselected angle.

Description

This is a continuation of application Ser. No. 359,270 filed May 11, 1973, now abandoned.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to improvements in adjustable supports and it relates more particularly to an improved collapsible and adjustable support for intravenous solution bottles.

There are many medical and surgical procedures which require the support of a vessel or other device above the level of a patient. Thus, it is common to intravenously feed a patient during or following surgery or under many other circumstances. To facilitate such intravenous feeding, a bottle containing an intravenous solution is supported by means of a bail in an inverted position at a certain height above the patient to provide a suitable head to the solution. The devices most commonly employed for supporting the intravenous solution bottle consists of roller supported stand or a bedpost mounted tree both of which devices possess numerous drawbacks and disadvantages. They are awkward and inconvenient, often interfere with ready access to the patient and of difficult and limited adjustment and otherwise leave much to be desired.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is accordingly a principal object of the present invention to provide an improved support device.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an improved adjustable support for intravenous solution bottles.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a wall mounted support for intravenous solution bottles which is contractable to a compact state and readily extendable and universally adjustable.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a device of the above nature characterized by its ruggedness, reliability, great convenience, ease of use, and high versatility and adaptability.

The above and other objects of the present invention will become apparent from a reading of the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings which illustrate a preferred embodiment thereof.

In a sense the present invention contemplates the provision of a support device comprising a wall mounting bracket for swining about a vertical axis and having a distal end linearly horizontally movable between a retracted position adjacent to the proximate end and an extended position remote from the proximate end, a support arm mounted to the linkage distal end and extending upwardly or outwardly and being angularly adjustable about a horizontal axis, and bottle support members located near the free end of the support arm.

In its preferred form the extension linkage consists of a pair of similar parallelogram linkages, the arms of which are pivoted at their upper ends to a common pivot plate having a vertical guide slot slidably engaged by a follower pin which is link-coupled to similar points on corresponding arms of each parallelogram linkage. The arms of the inner parallelogram linkage are piovted at their outer ends to a pivot plate mounted on a bearing block having vertically aligned sockets releasably engaged by vertically aligned pivot pins mounted on the wall bracket. A resilient friction pad is located on the bearing block and frictionally engages the face of the bracket base plate. The support arm is pivoted to a quadrant plate to which the outer parallelogram arms are pivoted at their outer ends and is spring biased to a vertical position. A quadrant slot with an undulate edge is formed in the quadrant plate and a spring loaded follower carried by the support arm engages the undulate edge. The support arm is locked in a preselected angular position by releaseably locking the follower pin from movement radially inwardly from the quadrant edge.

The improved support device is reliable, rugged and convenient, easily universally adjustable, contractable to a very compact condition and is highly versatile and adaptable.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of an intravenous feed bottle support device embodying the present invention shown in an extended position;

FIG. 2 is a front elevational view thereof partially fragmented and in section and shown in a fully retracted condition;

FIG. 3 is a fragmented front elevational view of the outer end thereof showing the adjustment of the bottle support arm;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken alongline 4--4 in FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a side elevational view thereof showing the support device by full and broken line in contracted and extended positions respectively; and

FIG. 6 is an enlarged sectional view taken alongline 6--6 in FIG. 5.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Referring now to the drawings which illustrate a preferred embodiment of the present invention, thereference numeral 10 generally designates the improvedextendable support device 10 which is mounted on a suitable wall "W" proximate and above a table or bed upon which the patient lies, who is to be intravenously fed. Thesupport device 10 includes a wall mounting bracket 11, which supports for swinging about a vertical axis, a horizontally linearly extendable extension assembly orsection 12, at the extendable outer end of which is mounted for adjustment about a horizontal transverse axis, a support arm section 13.

The mounting bracket 11 includes rectangularvertical base plate 14 secured to wall W by mounting screws and having mounted on its front face a pair of vertically spaced upper andlower blocks 16 and 17 respectively. Afirst pivot pin 18 is fixed in a vertical bore inblock 17 and projects vertically therefrom. Asocket 19 is formed in the underface ofblock 16 coaxial withpin 18 and a dependingvertical pivot pin 20, coaxial withpivot pin 18 slidably registers with and extends throughsocket 20 and a coaxial bore of reduced diameter beyond thetop block 16 and terminates in aknob 12. A peripheral flange 22 affixed topivot pin 20 slidably engages the lower part ofsocket 19 and ahelical compression spring 23 is entrapped between the base ofsocket 19 and flange 22 to resiliently urgepivot pin 20 to its lowermost position.

Aswing block 24 has vertically aligned bearing sockets formed in its top and bottom faces which mate and rotatably engage the free confronting ends ofpivot pins 18 and 20. Affixed to the rear face ofswing block 24 and extending for a major part of its length and projecting rearwardly therefrom is afriction pad 26 formed of any suitable resilient friction material such as polyurethane or the like. The rear face offriction pad 26 is cylindrical and coaxial with the rotational axis ofblock 24 and bears on the face ofbase plate 14 to frictionally restrain the free rotation ofblock 24. The side borders 27 offriction pad 26 embrace the side faces ofblock 24 and the outside faces ofborders 27 are inwardly recessed so as to be spaced frombase plate 14 whenblock 24 is swung to a position with the side faces ofblock 24 being parallel tobase plate 14.

Secured to and sandwichingswing block 24 are a pair of parallel forwardly projecting pivot plates which may be provided with superimposed cover plates. A pair of upper rear and lower forward, parallel, similarparallelogram link arms 30 and 32 respectively and their inner ends projecting betweenplates 29 and pivoted thereto at upper rear and lower forward points for swinging about corresponding horizontal axes, thearms 30 and 32 being tubular and of square transverse cross section. The upper ends of thearms 30 and 32 are sandwiched between and pivotly connected to a pair of transversely spaced parallelintermediate pivot plates 33 for swinging about horizontal axes relatively vertically and longitudinally offset like the axes of rotation of the lower ends ofarms 30 and 32 to provide a parallelogram linkage.

A second pair ofparallelogram linkage arms 34 and 36 similar in shape, dimensions and relationship to linkarms 30 and 32 and symmetrical thereto have their upper ends sandwiched between and pivoted toplates 33 for swinging about axes forward and at the levels of the axes of swing of the upper ends oflink arms 30 and 32. The lower ends oflink arms 34 and 36 extend between and are pivoted to the rear sections of a pair of transversely spacedparallel quadrant plates 37 to define second parallelogram linkages therewith similar and symmetrical to the parallelogramlinkage including arms 30 and 32.

Secured to the confronting faces oflink arms 30 and 36 between their upper pivot points and the upper ends oflink arms 32 and 34 are a pair ofarms 35 which are directed toward each other and swingable withcorresponding link arms 30 and 36. Pivotly connected to the free ends ofarms 35 aresimilar links 38 which converge upwardly and pivotly engage the enlarged medial section of atransverse pin 39 whose outer sections slidably engage a pair of oppositevertical slots 40 medially formed in the upper sections ofintermediate pivot plates 33. Friction washer andwasher assemblies 31 engage thepin 39 and are sandwiched between the confronting faces ofpivot plates 33 andlinks 38. The linkage between the two parallelogram linkages by way ofarms 35,links 38,pin 39 andslots 40 couple the parallelogram linkages so that thequadrant plates 37 are restricted to movement along a horizontal linear path relative to thepivot plates 29 and such movement may be easily effected by pulling or pushing in theplates 37 to effect the expansion or contraction respectively of thedouble parallelogram linkage 12.

The support arm section 13 includes atubular support arm 41 of square transverse cross section swingably connected at its inner lower end betweenquadrant plates 37 proximate their medial front borders by means of asuitable pivot pin 42 journalled betweenplates 37. Formed in each of theplates 37 coaxial withpin 42 are a pair of oppositesimilar quadrant slots 43 have outer curved undulate edges providing regularly peripherally spaced valleys orrecesses 46. The lower section ofsupport arm 41 is sandwiched between a pair of laterally spacedlongitudinal plates 47 which are secured to the side walls ofsupport arm 41 and project shortly rearwardly thereof. Ahelical tension spring 48 has a hooked upper end engaging a pin 49 mounted between the upper rear corners ofplates 47 and a hooked lower end engaging apin 50 mounted between the upper borders ofplate 37 to resilientlybias support arm 41 counter-clockwise to an upright vertical retracted position as shown in FIG. 2, with thespring 48 nesting between the rear borders ofplates 47. Alock assembly 51 longitudinally slidably telescopes the lower part ofsupport arm 41 and includes a pair of similar front andrear link strips 52 slidably engaging the inside faces of the front and rear walls ofsupport arm 41. Sandwiched between and secured to the upper sections ofstrips 52 is acam block 53 terminating at its top abovestrips 52 in anaxial finger 54, a forwardly rearwardly extendinglongitudinal slot 56 being formed inblock 53 directly belowfinger 54. Ayoke 58 is secured to the lower ends ofstrips 52 by means of a tongue 59 extending fromyoke 58 to betweenstrips 52 to which it is secured. Atransverse follower pin 60 is supported by theyoke 58 and slidably engages thequadrant edge 44 and a helical compression spring 61 is entrapped betweenpivot pin 42 and the confronting face of tongue 57 to resiliently urge theassembly 51 to an extended position fromsupport arm 41.

Mounted on the front face ofsupport arm 41 directly above theassembly 51 is ahandle 63 which includes a hollowtubular shank 64 terminating at its front inflanges 65 engaging the front face ofsupport arm 41 and terminating at its rear in a dependinghand grip 66. Ahousing member 67 is located in the rear face ofsupport arm 41 and includes a centrally aperturedcap section 68 coaxial withshank 64 and a pair of opposite flanges overlying the rear face ofsupport arm 41, thehousing 67 andhandle 63 being received in position byscrews 75 registering with aligned openings in flanges 62 and the walls ofarm 41 and engaging tapped openings inflanges 65. Atubular bushing 69 registers with thecap 68 and the bore inshank 64 and extends from a point inwardly of the outer end ofshank 64 through openings in the walls ofsupport arm 41 intocap 68 and is provided in its bottom wall with an opening 70 through whichfinger 54 projects.

Acylindrical plunger 71 slidably telescopes thebushing 69 and terminates at its outer end in a finger knob projecting beyond the outer face ofhandle 63. Aperipheral groove 72 is formed inplunger 71 and is followed by acylindrical locking section 73 from which projects acoaxial shaft 74 of reduced diameter which slidably engages an opening in the end wall ofcap 68. Ahelical compression spring 76 is entrapped between the confronting faces ofcap 68 andcylindrical section 73 to resilientlyurge plunger 71 to its outermost position as limited by a stop washer mounted on the free outer end ofshaft 74. It should be noted that when theplunger 71 is in its fully retracted position under the influence ofspring 76cylindrical section 73 registers withfinger 54 as shown in FIG. 2, and upon depression ofplunger 71 by pressing onknob 82, thegroove 72 registers withfinger 54 thereby permitting theslide assembly 51 to raise to a position wherefollower pin 60 can clear the ridges ofundulate edge 44.

Suitably mounted to the free end ofsupport arm 41 are a plurality of loopedhook members 77 of known construction for releasably engaging the support balls of depending inverted intravenous fluid bottles. The hook members extend laterally and axially fromsupport arm 41.

The use and operation of theimproved support device 10 is clear from the above, thedevice 10 being mounted by means of thebase plate 14 on a wall W proximate a bed, chair, table, or other patient carrying device. In its rest condition, as shown, thearm 41 is vertically upright, and thelinkage assembly 12 is in its retracted condition as shown in FIG. 2 and turned to lie flat against wall W. To use the support,support device 10 is pivoted about the mounting bracket 11 and pulled by thehandle 63 to the desired extension oflinkage assembly 12. Thereafter, theknob 82 is depressed and thearm 41 is adjusted to the desired increment angle with thefollower pin 60 registering with a selectedquadrant valley 46, the swinging ofarm 41 being permitted because of the release ofslide assembly 51 for vertical movement inarm 41. Theknob 82 is then released to bringcylinder 73 into registry withfinger 54 and prevent the raising offollower pin 60 withslide assembly 51 thereby lockingarm 41 in its present position. Thefriction pad 26 inhibits the swinging ofdevice 10 about support bracket 11. One or moreintravenous feed bottles 78 may be suspended fromhook members 77.

To return thedevice 10 to its collapsed condition,knob 82 is depressed to permitspring 48 to returnarm 41 to its vertical position, the linkage assembly is then pushed to its collapsed condition and swing to lie along wall W, where its free swinging is prevented.

While there has been described and illustrated a preferred embodiment of the present invention, it is apparent that numerous alterations, omissions and additions may be made without departing from the spirit thereof.

Claims (7)

What is claimed is:

1. A support device comprising a wall mounting bracket, a horizontal linear extension linkage supported at its proximate end in said wall mounting bracket for swinging about a vertical axis and having a distal end restricted to a linear horizontal movement between a retracted position adjacent said proximate end and an extended position remote from said proximate end, said linkage comprising a pair of end to end proximate and distal parallelogram linkages, means connecting said parallelogram linkages at their adjacent upper ends, said parallelogram linkages depending from said connecting means and means coupling said parallelogram linkages to restrict the parallelogram linkages to similar corresponding opposite movements, said parallelogram linkages being in vertical juxtaposition with said connecting means being uppermost when said extension linkage is fully retracted, a support arm mounted to the bottom distal end of said distal parallelogram linkage and extending upwardly therefrom and being angularly adjustable about a horizontal axis transverse to the direction of extension of said extension linkage proximate to the inner end of said arm and independently of the extended position of said horizontal linear extension linkage, said arm being juxtapositioned to said distal parallelogram linkage when said extension linkage is fully retracted and said arm is adjusted to a fully retracted vertical position, spring means resiliently urging said support arm to a vertical position, means on said support arm releasably locking said support arm in a preselected angular position, said locking means comprises a vertical plate mounted at said linkage distal end and having an arcuate indexing edge coaxial with said support arm horizontal adjustment axis and a locking element mounted on and swingable with said support arm and selectively adjustable into and out of locked engagement with said indexing edge, and a bottle support member located on said support arm proximate its outer end.

2. The support device of claim 1 wherein said indexing edge is of undulate configuration and comprising spring means urging said locking element toward said indexing edge and means for releasbly locking said element against movement in a direction away from said indexing edge.

3. The support device of claim 1 including means frictionally restraining the swinging of said extension linkage about said vertical axis.

4. The support device of claim 1 wherein said connecting means comprises a vertical pivot plate and each parallelogram linkage include a pair of parallel arms pivoted at their upper ends to spaced points on said pivot plate.

5. The support device of claim 4 wherein said pivot plate has a vertical medial guide slot formed therein and said coupling means comprises a follower member slidably engaging said guide slot and a pair of links swingably engaging and diverging from said follower member and pivotly coupled at their free ends to similarly located points on corresponding arms of said parallelogram linkages.

6. The support device of claim 1 including a bearing block positioned in the distal end of said linkage and having vertically aligned upper and lower bearing sockets, said wall mounting bracket including a pair of vertical coaxial pivot pins engaging said sockets.

7. The support device of claim 6 wherein one of said pivot pins is axially movable and spring means biasing said movable pivot pin toward the other pivot pin.

Images